Comments on Commissioner Bill James as released to the Press
I’m frequently asked to issue press releases and public commentary on a variety of topics. Just this week I’ve been interviewed by or spoken to 4 media people — one of which was a reporter for the Washington Times. Today, I was asked to offer a comment on a local issue wherein a prominent local politician and evangelical Christian, often known to rather strident, made a statement in a publicly-circulated email that part of the problem with low-performing urban schools in Charlotte was related to the “moral sewer” in the black urban community. His comments have been roundly criticized by Republicans and Democrats alike and it now appears that the story is growing “legs” and who knows how big the firestorm will grow.
Because I am rarely fully-quoted when interviewed or I issue a press release, I have decided to issue the complete text of my comments to the Charlotte Observer on the matter. You will find them below:
American politics, for better and for worse, has long had figures who enjoy using a tactic of hurling the occasional verbal bombshell into the fray in order to provoke a debate. Newt Gingrich and Bill James often appear to be equally blessed with the proclivity, (some might argue penchant), for using less-than-graceful verbiage in order to garner attention toward an underlying reality. At the core of Bill James’ ineloquent declaration is a reality that must not be over-looked — Moral decay produces negative societal ramifications. Every community, regardless of race, locale or socio-economic status, needs to take an honest look at the statistics and consequences related to their behavior and accept the challenge to do better. I hope that such a discussion will not be ignored once the debate over Mr. James’ comments has died down. I would not have phrased my concern as Mr. James phrased it, but I believe a debate on the societal implications of immoral behavior and dysfunctional families is long over-due and it has nothing to do with race and everything to do with morality and behavior.
Dan Burrell, Ed.D.
Northside Baptist Church, Senior Pastor
Charlotte, NC
Jonathan said,
December 2, 2004 @ 5:18 pm
Consider the recent harangue deliverd to the black community by one of their most respected. Bill Cosby:
For speaking his mind, Cosby may have his ghetto pass revoked. He has a target on his back.
“These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids - $500 sneakers, for what? And [they] won’t spend $200 for ‘Hooked on Phonics?’”
“I can’t even talk the way these people talk: ‘Why you ain’t, ‘Where you is…’ And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk… You can’t be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth!”
Regurding blacks as targets for the police”
“These are not political criminals. These are people going around stealing Coca-Cola. People getting shot in the back of the head over a piece of pound cake. And then we run out and we are outraged, saying, ‘The cops shouldn’t have shot him.’ What the hell was he doing with the pound cake in his hand?”